Textile carrier

ABSTRACT

A textile carrier having a barrel with two head ends secured thereto. An insert into each end of the barrel provides a bushing and a bearing surface for the spindle while also providing an attachment through which the head ends or flanges are secured to the carrier barrel. The insert comprises a body having a central opening through which the spindle passes and a plurality of projections therearound which receive fastening members. The insert may also be provided with axially extending tapered protrusions around the periphery thereof. Fastening members passing through the head end pass partially into the projections of the insert and are self tapping so as to threadedly secure themselves to the insert and the side wall of the barrel.

United States Patent [151 3,650,494 Hutchinson [4 1 Mar. 21, 1972 4] TEXTILE CARRIER Primary ExaminerGeorge F. lviautz 72 Inventor: George M. Hutchinson, 403 Chandler St., Atmmekweumgm" Mannmg Hartwell, Ga. 30643 57 ABSTRACT [22] Filed: June 2, 1970 Appl. No.: 42,684

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/1951 Bauer ..242/1 18.6 9/1968 Alexander et al ..242/1 18.61 X

FOREIGN PATENTS OR APPLICATIONS 460,596 10/1949 Canada ..242/1 18.6

A textile carrier having a barrel with two head ends secured thereto. An insert into each end of the barrel provides a bush ing and a bearing surface for the spindle while also providing an attachment through which the head ends or flanges are secured to the carrier barrel. The insert comprises a body hav ing a central opening through which the spindle passes and a plurality of projections therearound which receive fastening members. The insert may also be provided with axially extending tapered protrusions around the periphery thereof. Fastening members passing through the head end pass partially into the projections of the insert and are self tapping so as to threadedly secure themselves to the insert and the side wall of the barrel.

15 Claims, 4 Drawing Figures TEXTILE CARRIER BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION For many years textile carriers such as bobbins, spools and the like were of wooden construction having wooden barrels and wooden head ends or flanges, if any, and utilizing metal bushing-bearing surfaces inserted into the barrel. These carriers were extremely heavy, were susceptible to breakage when dropped or mishandled, and when nicked by a dofling tool or the like provided a rough surface whichcould break down the yarn end or the like being put onto the carrier or produce a quality defect therein.

Substantial effort has since been made, using advanced technology to produce improved textile carriers. For instance,

lmetal barrels have been employed along with wooden, fiber or plastic head ends attached thereto. Further, these innovations in textile carriers have led to the many different approaches for attachment of the head end or flange to the barrel of the carrier. As such, various and sundry types of textile carriers have been produced. For the most part, however, all of these textile carriers are deficient in at least one facet. For instance, considerable effort has been directed to the stabilization of the barrel of the carrier so as to prevent collapse or distortion thereof by pressure applied thereagainst by the yarn that is wound around the barrel along its length. Additionally, since, for all practical purposes, the barrel of the carrier is seldom damaged during use, while the flanges are often damaged from continued use or misuse, practical and economical approaches have been sought for replacement of damaged head ends to rebuild the old textile carriers. In view of the fact that the margin of profit in the textile industry is generally small and further that thousands of textile carriers are used daily in those textile operations that require same, it is incumbent upon the manufacturers of the textile carriers to provide an initially cheap textile carrier that has a long first life and that is easily overhauled by the replacement of new flanges to the original barrel.

In seeking a solution to the textile carrier problem, producers of textile carriers have thus utilized various and sundry inserts into the end of the textile barrels to which the flanges are attached. These inserts are generally screwed into the end of a threaded barrel, secured in the barrel by rings, press fitted into the end of the barrel, or snap fitted into the end of the barrel. Due to the large number of textile carriers needed,

as mentioned earlier, continued effort has been expanded so as to provide the textile manufacturers with more economical textile carriers from the sense of initial economics, longer life or more economical rebuilding. The present invention is yet another improvement in this area, but one which surpasses all of the improvements heretofore known. Further, in the sense of patentability there is no known prior art that would appear to anticipate or suggest the textile carrier of the present invention. In this regard, and as mentioned earlier, numerous improvements have been made theretofore. These improvementsare exemplified by U.S. Pat. Nos. 3,408,023 to Alexander et al., 2,625,343 to Foote; 2,690,885 to Crooks; 3,132,817 to Atwood et al; and 3,099,417 to Portal. It should be pointed out, however, that none of the above patents either alone or in any combination anticipate or suggest the textile carrier of the present invention.

SUMMARY OF THE INVENTION It is an object of the present invention to provide an improved textile carrier.

A further object of the present invention is to provide a textile carrier that iseasily assembled and disassembled so as to replace defective parts thereof.

Still further, another object of the present invention is to provide a novel insert for the construction of a textile carrier.

Generally speaking, the present invention is directed to a textile carrier comprising a barrel; an insert in each end of said barrel, said insert having a spindle receiving bearing surface extending axially therethrough, said insert further having a plurality of fastening member receiving projections therearound; a flange secured to each end of said barrel, said flange having a central aperture therein in axial alignment with the spindle receiving bearing through said insert, and a plurality of self threading fastening members for securing said flange and said insert to said barrel, said fastening members extending through said flange partially into said projections and partially into the inside wall of said barrel, said fastening members providing a threaded connection in said projection and said side wall during insertion therein.

The novel insert of the present invention may suitably be molded from a plastic composition. The insert accomplishes several functions. First, it serves as a bushing for a spindle on which the textile carrier is mounted for receiving yarn or other textile materials. Secondly, the inside of the bushing serves as a bearing surface for the spindle and thirdly, transversely extending projections are provided to receive self tapping fastening members extending through the flange which become threadedly engaged with both the protrusions and the side wall of the barrel.

The barrel may be constructed as desired though a light metallic alloy such as for example, aluminum, is preferred. The barrel should be susceptible to receipt of the self tapping fastening members in threaded engagement therewith. The head ends or flanges affixed to the barrel may be any desired material, but advantageously are manufactured from a material that will withstand the riggers of use in the textile operation to which the textile carrier is subjected. For example, the head ends may be manufactured from a pressed fibrous material, may be molded from various plastic compositions, or may be a light gauge metal such as the metals from which the barrel may be constructed.

The inserts of the present invention likewise have a plurality of protrusions extending axially therefrom. These protrusions are spaced around the periphery of the insert and taper from the base to the forward end so as to provide a guide path for spindle into the central opening of the: insert. Accordingly, as the textile carrier of the present invention is being placed onto a spindle, the protrusions of the upper insert project downwardly towards the spindle in a manner such that the spindle is guided into the spindle receiving bushing of the insert. Moreover, since the length, diameter and taper of the various spindles throughout the textile industry differ, the textile carrier of the present invention may be adapted to be received on any size, length or taper of spindle. This feat is accomplished by placement of additional inserts intermediate the length of the barrel and by variation of the size of the spindle receiving openings in the insert. For instance, as shown in FIG. 1, an insert may be press fit into the barrel approximately at its mid point with the protrusions extending downwardly. The insert is thus frictionally engaged with the inner side walls of the barrel and the protrusions provide a guideway for the spindle into the central opening of the insert which in this case serves as the bushing and bearing surface for a short spindle.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS FIG. 1 is a vertical cross section of a textile carrier constructed according to the teachings of the present invention.

FIG. 2 is a bottom view of an insert as is taught herein for use in the construction of a novel textile carrier.

FIG. 3 is a perspective view of an insert according to the teachings of the present invention.

FIG. 4 is a top cross sectional view of a textile carrier produced accordingto the teachings of the present invention and which is taken along a line of lV-lV of FIG. 1.

DESCRIPTION OF THE PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS Referring to the Figures, a specific embodiments of the present invention will now be discussed in detail. FIG. 1 shows a vertical cross section of a textile carrier produced according to the teachings of the present invention. The textile carrier is shown to comprise a barrel generally indicated as 10 having an inner side wall 11 and an outer side wall 12. Positioned at the top and bottom of barrel 10 are head ends or flanges 20 and 20. In FIG. 1, the flanges 20 and 20 are shown to be discs having raised central portions 21 and 21 respectively and having central apertures 22 and 22. Likewise, flanges 20 and 20' have a plurality of openings 23 and 23' adjacent the central opening in a circular pattern therearound, said smaller openings being provided to receive fastening members that are used to secure flanges 20 and 20' to barrel 10.

An insert generally indicated as 30 is received in each end of barrel 10 to provide a means for securing flanges 20 and 20 to barrel 10. Insert 30 may best be seen in FIGS. 1, 2, and 3. Insert 30 comprises a body 31 having a central opening 32 therethrough and having a plurality of outwardly extending projections 33 therearound. Central opening 32 of body 31 of insert 30 is a combined bushing and bearing surface for a spindle that passes therethrough. Obviously, according to the size or taper of the spindle, the size of opening 32 in body 31 may vary. See, for example, FIG. 1, where the opening 32 in the lower insert is larger than the opening 32 in the upper insert. Projections 33 extending outwardly from body 31 provide an effective diameter for insert 30 for a press fit within the inside diameter of barrel 10. Accordingly, insert 30 may be press fit into barrel l0. Projections 33 comprise a straight member 34 having a flaired outer end 35. Flaired outer end 35 of projection 33 has a circular shaped slot 36 extending therealong, slot 36 representing more than 50 per cent of a circle such that the width of slot 36 is larger internally than at the surface which is immediately adjacent inner wall 11 of barrel 10. The purpose of the circular slots 36 will be defined hereinafter. Insert 30 has at one end thereof a plurality of protrusions 38 spacially positioned around the periphery thereof. Protrusions 38 are comprised of an outer surface 39 and a tapered inner surface 39 which begins at the forward end of opening 32 and tapers outwardly towards inner wall 11 of barrel 10. Referring to FIG. 3, insert 30 may be provided with a circular flange 31 if additional strength or stability is required for the particular textile carrier.

According to FIG. 1, therefore, an insert 30 is positioned within barrel 10 at the top thereof and press fit therein so that protrusions 38 extend inwardly towards the opposite end of barrel 10. Likewise, an insert 30 is press fit within the bottom of barrel 10 with its protrusions 38 extending inwardly towards the opposite end of barrel 10. With inserts 30 pressed into barrel 10, the flaired upper edges 35 of projections 33 and the outer edges 39 of protrusions 38 contact the inner wall 11 of barrel 10 and are in frictional engagement therewith. When flanges 20 and 20' are affixed to barrel 10 to form the final textile carrier, a plurality of self tapping fastening members 40 are inserted through small openings 23 and 23' of flanges 20 and 20. As best shown in FIGS. 1 and 4, fastening members 40 as they are being initially utilized, produce threads in circular slots 36 of projections 33 as well as in inner wall 11 of barrel l0. Fastening members 40 thus are in threaded engagement with both insert 30 and barrel 10 so as to secure and make integral the two elements. As shown in FIG. 1, threaded elements 40 have an enlarged upper head 41 which is received in a counterbore provided therefor in flanges 20 and 20. As

.fastening members 40 are screwed into the assembly up to the recessing of enlarged upper head 41 in counterbore 23', flanges 20 and 20 are secured to barrel 10.

As shown in FIG. 1, it may be desirable to position a gasket 50 between barrel 10 and the head end or flange 20. Gasket 50 extends a little beyond the outer wall 12 of barrel l and has a central opening 51 and a plurality of fastening member openings 52 therein. Gasket 50 insures both a good solid connection between barrel and flange 20 while simultaneously therewith eliminates an area where yarn could possibly become entangled.

As shown in FIG. 1, additional inserts 30 may be positioned intermediate the length of barrel 10. In this manner, the protrusions 38 would likewise extend downwardly facing the direction of the oncoming spindle so as to guide the spindle into the central opening 32. Hence, a spindle of any desired length may be utilized with the textile carrier of the present invention simply by positioning appropriate inserts 30 at the desired locations. As mentioned earlier, the additional inserts 30 may be press fit into frictional engagement with barrel l0. Continued use of a bobbin may, however, force the extra insert 30 away from its intended position. Accordingly, the intermediate insert 30 may be secured in place in any desired manner, such as for example with a short tubular member (not shown) that telescopes within barrel 10 or by additional inserts.

FIG. 4 illustrates a cross section of a textile carrier constructed according to the teachings of the present invention. Additionally, the structure shown in FIG. 4 comprises a modified carrier from the carrier shown in FIG. 1. In FIG. 4, a barrel of a textile carrier is shown having an insert press fit therein. Inner wall 111 of barrel 110 has, however, a counterbore 113 to receive insert 130. Counterbore 113 enlarges the inside diameter of that portion of barrel 110 to the outside diameter of insert 130. Also a shoulder 113' is provided at the end of counterbore 113 against which the forward end of tapered protrusions (not shown) reside. Hence when insert 130 is press fit into barrel 1 10 and self tapping fastening members 140 are being incorporated therewith, shoulder 113' resists any chance of movement of insert 130 away from fastening members 140. Proper placement of fastening members 140 into circular slots 136 of projections of insert 130 and into inner wall 111 of barrel 110 is thus facilitated.

Having described the present invention in particular detail, it is obvious that one skilled in the art will be able to make variations and modifications thereto without departing from the scope of the present invention. Accordingly, the scope of the present invention should be limited only by the claims appended hereto.

What is claimed is:

l. A textile carrier comprising:

a. a barrel;

b. an insert in at least one end of said barrel, said insert having a spindle receiving bearing surface extending axially therethrough, said insert further having a plurality of separate fastening member receiving projections therearound;

c. a flange secured to at least one end of said barrel, said flange having a central aperture therein in axial alignment with the spindle receiving bearing through said insert; and

d. a plurality of self threading fastening members for securing said flange and said insert to said barrel, said fastening members extending through said flange partially into said projections and partially into the inside wall of said barrel, said fastening members producing a threaded connection in said projections and said wall during insertion therein.

2. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said barrel is counterbored to receive said insert.

3. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said insert further comprises a plurality of spacially separate tapered axial projections, said projections extending toward the opposite end of said barrel.

4. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein the barrel is aluminum.

5. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein the flange is a molded plastic flange.

6. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein a gasket is positioned between said barrel and said flange.

7. A textile spool as defined in claim 6 wherein said gasket is a textile material.

8. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 comprising further at least one additional insert positioned intermediate the length of said barrel and frictionally engaged therein.

9. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said barrel is aluminum, said insert is a molded plastic insert and said barrel is counterbored to receive said insert at each end thereof.

10. An insert for securing a flange to a barrel of a textile carrier comprising a body, said body having a central spindle receiving aperture therethrough and a plurality of separate projections secured to said body and extending outwardly therefrom, said projections having circular shaped slots at their outer ends for receiving fastening members.

11. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim wherein said circular slots comprising more than 50 per cent of a circle.

12. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 10 wherein the width of the slots is greater internally than at the outer edge thereof.

13. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 10 comprising further a plurality of tapered protrusions extending axially of said body.

14. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 13 wherein said protrusions taper in to said central opening so as to guide a spindle therein.

15. A textile carrier as defined in claim 1 wherein an insert is present in each end of said barrel with a flange secured thereto. 

1. A textile carrier comprising: a. a barrel; b. an insert in at least one end of said barrel, said insert having a spindle receiving bearing surface extending axially therethrough, said insert further having a plurality of separate fastening member receiving projections therearound; c. a flange secured to at least one end of said barrel, said flange having a central aperture therein in axial alignment with the spindle receiving bearing through said insert; and d. a plurality of self threading fastening members for securing said flange and said insert to said barrel, said fastening members extending through said flange partially into said projections and partially into the inside wall of said barrel, said fastening members producing a threaded connection in said projections and said wall during insertion therein.
 2. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said barrel is counterbored to receive said insert.
 3. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said insert further comprises a plurality of spacially separate tapered axial projections, said projections extending toward the opposite end of said barrel.
 4. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein the barrel is aluminum.
 5. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein the flange is a molded plastic flange.
 6. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein a gasket is positioned between said barrel and said flange.
 7. A textile spool as defined in claim 6 wherein said gasket is a textile material.
 8. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 comprising further at least one additional insert positioned intermediate the length of said barrel and frictionally engaged therein.
 9. A textile spool as defined in claim 1 wherein said barrel is aluminum, said insert is a molded plastic insert and said barrel is counterbored to receive said insert at each end thereof.
 10. An insert for securing a flange to a barrel of a textile carrier comprising a body, said body having a central spindle receiving aperture therethrough and a plurality of separate projections secured to said body and extending outwardly therefrom, said projections having circular shaped slots at their outer ends for receiving fastening members.
 11. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 10 wherein said circular slots comprising more than 50 per cent of a circle.
 12. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 10 wherein the width of the slots is greater internally than at the outer edge thereof.
 13. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 10 comprising further a plurality of tapered protrusions extending axially of said body.
 14. An insert for a textile carrier as defined in claim 13 wherein said protrusions taper in to said central opening so as to guide a spindle therein.
 15. A textile carrier as defined in claim 1 wherein an insert is present in each end of said barrel with a flange secured thereto. 